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(Bloomberg) — When Turkey’s Cagri Bey deep-sea drilling vessel set off for Somalia on Feb. 15, it marked the latest manifestation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ambitions in Africa.

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Joint oil-and-gas exploration off the Somali coast is a crucial development in Turkey’s aims to diversify energy sources. It also represents a new domain of Turkish investment across the continent, where Ankara has steadily widened its footprint for the past two decades by building out civic infrastructure and expanding arms sales and military aid.

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Unlike China’s approach to the continent, which centered for years on massive infrastructure projects, or that of Russia, which trades security support for resource access, Turkey is pursuing a kind of middle course — combining military assistance with business agreements and diplomatic engagement to turn security ties into lasting influence. In Somalia, this sway has given it a purchase in the Red Sea that regional powers including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates also covet.

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“Turkey sees East Africa as central to its long-term ambitions — from energy to space — and is using military support to secure a foothold,” said Serhat Erkmen, director of the Ankara-based Pros&Cons Security and Risk Analysis Center. Erkmen added that Turkey is also positioning itself to project “influence over one of the world’s most strategic shipping corridors.”

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The country’s involvement in the continent is multifaceted. In Niger, it invested in public health and clean water systems. In Sudan, it built a neonatal ICU and is seeking to develop a port. In Libya, it deployed military trainers, armed drones and allied Syrian fighters to help a UN-recognized government.

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But nowhere are Turkey’s gains more visible than in Somalia. Ankara operates its largest overseas military base in Mogadishu, where it has trained more than a third of the Somali army since 2017 and sold it armed drones to use against al-Shabaab, the local al-Qaeda affiliate. In the past month, Turkey has deployed F-16 jets, tanks and helicopters to further shore up government positions — a delivery Somalia’s State Minister of Defense Omar Abdi Ali said would help stabilize the country, which has been wracked by conflict for almost four decades.

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A Turkish naval base and ballistic-missile test range are also under development in Somalia, as is Turkey’s first spaceport, which broke ground earlier this year.

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At the same time, Ankara helped develop the country’s civic infrastructure by building schools, hospitals and an airport. In 2024, it brokered a deal to ease tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia.

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Turkey’s annual trade with Africa rose 10% last year to $35 billion — almost equal to its trade with the US — largely concentrated in chemicals, agriculture, steel and iron. To date, Turkish contractors have been involved in more than 2,000 projects across the continent worth $100 billion, Erdogan said last week.